For the purposes of the present document, the following abbreviations apply:
AMAcknowledged ModeAMDAcknowledged Mode DataARQAutomatic Repeat RequestBCCHBroadcast Control CHannelBCHBroadcast CHannelC-Control-CCCHCommon Control CHannelCCHControl CHannelCCTrCHCoded Composite Transport ChannelCPCyclic PrefixCRCCyclic Redundancy CheckCTCHCommon Traffic ChannelD-BCHDynamic Broadcast CHannelDCCHDedicated Control CHannelDCHDedicated CHannelDLDownLinkDSCHDownlink Shared CHannelDTCHDedicated Traffic CHannelFACHForward link Access CHannelFDDFrequency Division DuplexL1Layer 1 (physical layer)L2Layer 2 (data link layer)L3Layer 3 (network layer)LILength IndicatorLSBLeast Significant BitMACMedium Access ControlMBMSMultmedia Broadcast Multicast ServiceMCCHMBMS point-to-multipoint Control CHannelMRWMove Receiving WindowMSBMost Significant BitMSCHMBMS point-to-multipoint Scheduling CHannelMTCHMBMS point-to-multipoint Traffic ChannelP-BCHPrimary Broadcast CHannelPCCHPaging Control ChannelPCFICHPhysical Control Format Indicator CHannelPCHPaging ChannelPDCCHPhysical Downlink Control CHannelPDUProtocol Data UnitPHYPHYsical layerPHICHPhysical Hybrid-ARQ Indicator CHannelPhyCHPhysical CHannelsRACHRandom Access ChannelREResource ElementRSReference SignalRLCRadio Link ControlRoHCRobust Header CompressionRRCRadio Resource ControlSAPService Access PointSDUService Data UnitSHCCHSHared channel Control CHannelSNSequence NumberSUFISUper FIeldTCHTraffic CHannelTDDTime Division DuplexTFITransport Format IndicatorTMTransparent ModeTMDTransparent Mode DataTTITransmission Time IntervalU-User-UEUser EquipmentULUpLinkUMUnacknowledged ModeUMDUnacknowledged Mode DataUMTSUniversal Mobile Telecommunications SystemUTRAUMTS Terrestrial Radio AccessUTRANUMTS Terrestrial Radio Access Network
Universal Mobile Telecommunications System (UMTS) is one of the third-generation (3G) wireless phone technologies. Currently, the most common form of UMTS uses W-CDMA as the underlying air interface. UMTS is standardized by the 3rd Generation Partnership Project (3GPP), and is sometimes marketed as 3GSM as a way of emphasizing the combination of the 3G nature of the technology and the GSM standard which it was designed to succeed.
UTRAN (UMTS Terrestrial Radio Access Network) is a collective term for the Node-B's and Radio Network Controllers which make up the UMTS radio access network. The UTRAN allows connectivity between the UE and a core network, and can include UEs, Node Bs, and Radio Network Controllers (RNCs)—noting that an RNC and Node B can be the same device, although typical implementations have a separate RNC located in a central office serving multiple Node B's.
For UMTS, a Broadcast Channel (BCH) may have a fixed pre-defined transport format and may be broadcasted over the entire coverage area of a cell. In Long Term Evolutino (LTE) which improves upon the UMTS standard, the broadcast channel may be used to transmit a “System Information field” necessary for system access. However, due to the large size of a System Information field, the BCH may be divided into two portions including a Primary Broadcast CHannel (P-BCH) and Dynamic Broadcast CHannel (D-BCH). The P-BCH may contain basic Layer 1 (physical layer)/Layer 2 (data link layer) (or “L1/L2”) system parameters useful to demodulate the D-BCH, which in turn may contain the remaining System Information field.
It may occur that a UE may need to blindly decode a Physical Downlink Control Channel (PDCCH) from several possible formats and associated Control Channel Elements (CCEs). Unfortunately, this may impose a substantial burden on the UE that may exceed practical hardware limitations and thus lead to increased costs and/or reduced performance of the UE.
Therefore, there is a need for addressing this issue. Accordingly, methods and systems for addressing this and other issues are disclosed herein.